Psalm 11

REFUGE IN THE LORD

For the choir director. Of David.

1 I have taken refuge in the Lord.af

How can you say to me,

“Escape to the mountainsH like a bird!ag

2 For look, the wicked string bows;

they put their arrows on bowstrings

to shoot from the shadows at the upright in heart.a

3 When the foundations are destroyed,

what can the righteous do?”b

4 The Lord is in his holy temple;c

the Lord—his throne is in heaven.d

His eyes watch; his gazeA examines everyone.B

5 The Lord examines the righteous, but he hates the wicked

andC those who love violence.e

6 Let him rain burning coalsD and sulfur on the wicked;

let a scorching wind be the portion in their cup.f

7 For the Lord is righteous; he loves righteous deeds.

The upright will see his face.g

Psalm 12

OPPRESSION BY THE WICKED

For the choir director: according to Sheminith.h A psalm of David.

1 Help, Lord, for no faithful one remains;

the loyal have disappeared from the human race.* i

2 They lie to one another;

they speak with flattering lips and deceptive hearts.j

3 May the Lord cut off all flattering lips

and the tongue that speaks boastfully.k

4 They say, “Through our tongues we have power;

our lips are our own—who can be our master?”l

5 “Because of the devastation of the needy

and the groaning of the poor,

I will now rise up,” says the Lord.

“I will provide safety for the one who longs for it.”m

6 The words of the Lord are pure words,

like silver refined in an earthen furnace,

purified seven times.n

7 You, Lord, will guard us;F

you will protect usG from this generation forever.o

8 The wicked prowlH all around,

and what is worthless is exalted by the human race.p

Psalm 13

A PLEA FOR DELIVERANCE

For the choir director. A psalm of David.

1 How long, Lord? Will you forget me

forever?

How long will you hide your face from me?q

2 How long will I store up anxious concernsI within me,

agony in my mind every day?

How long will my enemy dominate me?r

3 Consider me and answer, Lord my God.

Restore brightness to my eyes;s

otherwise, I will sleep in death.

4 My enemy will say, “I have triumphed over him,”

and my foes will rejoice because I am shaken.t

5 But I have trusted in your faithful love;u

my heart will rejoice in your deliverance.v

6 I will sing to the Lord

because he has treated me generously.w

Psalm 14

A PORTRAIT OF SINNERS

For the choir director. Of David.

1 The fool says in his heart, “There’s no God.”x

They are corrupt; they do vile deeds.

There is no one who does good.

2 The Lord looks down from heaven on the human raceJ,y

to see if there is one who is wise,

one who seeks God.

3 All have turned away;

all alike have become corrupt.

There is no one who does good,

not even one.z

4 Will evildoers never understand?

They consume my people as they consume bread;a

they do not call on the Lord.b

5 ThenA they will be filled with dread,

for God is with those who areB righteous.c

6 You sinners frustrate the plans of the oppressed,d

but the Lord is his refuge.e

7 Oh, that Israel’s deliverance would come from Zion!

When the Lord restores the fortunes of his people,C

let Jacob rejoice, let Israel be glad.f

Psalm 15

A DESCRIPTION OF THE GODLY

A psalm of David.

1 Lord, who can dwell in your tent?g

Who can live on your holy mountain?h

2 The one who lives blamelessly, practices righteousness,

and acknowledges the truth in his hearti—

3 who does not slander with his tongue,j

who does not harm his friend

or discredit his neighbor,k

4 who despises the one rejected by the LordD

but honors those who fear the Lord,l

who keeps his word whatever the cost,m

5 who does not lend his silver at interestn

or take a bribe against the innocento—

the one who does these things will never be shaken.p

Psalm 16

CONFIDENCE IN THE LORD

A Miktam of David.q

1 Protect me, God, for I take refuge in you.r

2 IE said to the Lord, “You are my Lord;

I have nothing good besides you.”F,s

3 As for the holy people who are in the land,t

they are the noble ones.

All my delight is in them.

4 The sorrows of those who take another god

for themselves will multiply;

I will not pour out their drink offerings of blood,

and I will not speak their names with my lips.u

5 Lord, you are my portionG

and my cup of blessing;

you hold my future.v

6 The boundary lines have fallen for me

in pleasant places;

indeed, I have a beautiful inheritance.w

7 I will bless the Lord who counsels mex—

even at night when my thoughts trouble me.H,y

8 I always let the Lord guide me.I

Because he is at my right hand,

I will not be shaken.z

9 Therefore my heart is glad

and my whole being rejoices;

my body also rests securely.aa

10 For you will not abandon me to Sheol;ab

you will not allow your faithful one to see decay.ac

11 You reveal the path of life to me;

in your presence is abundant joy;ad

at your right hand are eternal pleasures.ae

Psalm 17

A PRAYER FOR PROTECTION

A prayer of David.

1 Lord, hear a just cause;af

pay attention to my cry;

listen to my prayer—

from lips free of deceit.ag

2 Let my vindication come from you,

for you see what is right.ah

3 You have tested my heart;ai

you have examined me at night.

You have tried me and found nothing evil;aj

I have determined that my mouth will not sin.J

4 Concerning what people do:

by the words from your lips

I have avoided the ways of the violent.a

5 My steps are on your paths;

my feet have not slipped.b

6 I call on you, God,

because you will answer me;c

listen closely to me; hear what I say.

7 Display the wonders of your faithful love,d

Savior of all who seek refugee

from those who rebel against your right hand.A

8 Protect me as the pupil of your eye;f

hide me in the shadow of your wingsg

9 fromB the wicked who treat me violently,C

my deadly enemies who surround me.h

10 They are uncaring;D,i

their mouths speak arrogantly.j

11 They advance against me;E now they surround me.k

They are determinedF

to throw me to the ground.l

12 They areG like a lion eager to tear,

like a young lion lurking in ambush.m

13 Rise up, Lord!

Confront him; bring him down.n

With your sword, save me from the wicked.o

14 With your hand, Lord, save me from men,

from men of the world

whose portion is in this life:

You fill their bellies with what you have in store;

their sons are satisfied,

and they leave their surplus to their children.p

15 But I will see your face in righteousness;q

when I awake, I will be satisfied with your presence.H,r

Psalm 18

PRAISE FOR DELIVERANCE

For the choir director. Of the servant of the Lord, David, who spoke the words of this song to the Lord on the day the Lord rescued him from the grasp of all his enemies and from the power of Saul.s He said:

1 I love you, Lord, my strength.

2 The Lord is my rock,

my fortress, and my deliverer,t

my God, my rock where I seek refuge,

my shieldu and the horn of my salvation,v

my stronghold.

3 I called to the Lord, who is worthy of praise,w

and I was saved from my enemies.x

4 The ropes of death were wrapped around me;

the torrents of destruction terrified me.y

5 The ropes of Sheol entangled me;

the snares of death confronted me.z

6 I called to the Lord in my distress,

and I cried to my God for help.

From his temple he heard my voice,aa

and my cry to him reached his ears.ab

7 Then the earth shook and quaked;

the foundations of the mountains trembled;ac

they shook because he burned with anger.

8 Smoke rose from his nostrils,

and consuming fire came from his mouth;

coals were set ablaze by it.I,ad

9 He bent the heavens and came down,ae

total darkness beneath his feet.

10 He rode on a cherub and flew,

soaring on the wings of the wind.af

11 He made darkness his hiding place,

dark storm clouds his canopy around him.ag

12 From the radiance of his presence,ah

his clouds swept onward with hail and blazing coals.

13 The Lord thundered fromJ heaven;

the Most High made his voice heard.K,ai

14 He shot his arrows and scattered them;

he hurledL lightning bolts and routed them.aj

15 The depths of the sea became visible,

the foundations of the world were exposed,

at your rebuke, Lord,

at the blast of the breath of your nostrils.a

16 He reached down from on high

and took hold of me;

he pulled me out of deep water.b

17 He rescued me from my powerful enemy

and from those who hated me,

for they were too strong for me.c

18 They confronted me in the day of my calamity,

but the Lord was my support.d

19 He brought me out to a spacious place;e

he rescued me because he delighted in me.f

20 The Lord rewarded me

according to my righteousness;g

he repaid me

according to the cleanness of my hands.h

21 For I have kept the ways of the Lord

and have not turned from my God to wickedness.i

22 Indeed, I let all his ordinances guide meA

and have not disregarded his statutes.j

23 I was blameless toward himk

and kept myself from my iniquity.

24 So the Lord repaid me

according to my righteousness,l

according to the cleanness of my hands in his sight.m

25 With the faithful

you prove yourself faithful,

with the blameless

you prove yourself blameless,

26 with the pure

you prove yourself pure,

but with the crooked

you prove yourself shrewd.n

27 For you rescue an oppressed people,o

but you humble those with haughty eyes.p

28 Lord, you light my lamp;

my God illuminates my darkness.q

29 With you I can attack a barricade,B

and with my God I can leap over a wall.r

30 God—his way is perfect;s

the word of the Lord is pure.t

He is a shield to all who take refuge in him.u

31 For who is God besides the Lord?v

And who is a rock? Only our God.w

32 God—he clothes me with strengthx

and makes my way perfect.

33 He makes my feet like the feet of a deery

and sets me securely on the heights.C,z

34 He trains my hands for war;aa

my arms can bend a bow of bronze.ab

35 You have given me the shield of your salvation;

your right hand upholds me,ac

and your humility exalts me.

36 You make a spacious place beneath me for my steps,ad

and my ankles do not give way.ae

37 I pursue my enemies and overtake them;

I do not turn back until they are wiped out.af

38 I crush them, and they cannot get up;

they fall beneath my feet.ag

39 You have clothed me …